What to expect at a Southern Baptist church

A Southern Baptist church is an independent congregation that cooperates with the Southern Baptist Convention, the largest Protestant body in the United States and the most common kind of church in North Carolina. Each congregation owns its own building, calls its own pastor, and votes on its own decisions — the Convention is a partnership for missions and seminaries, not a chain of command.

• One main Sunday morning service, typically 60 to 90 minutes, often with a second earlier or later service in larger churches.
• A sermon of 30 to 45 minutes that works through a Bible passage. This is the centre of the service, not a segment of it.
• Music that ranges from hymns with a piano and choir to a full contemporary band, depending entirely on the individual church. Two Southern Baptist churches in the same town can feel completely different.
• An invitation at the end of the service to come forward, speak with someone, or make a decision. Nobody will make you.

Read the full Southern Baptist guide — beliefs, worship, and common questions →